PEU Chapter 16

Day 16 of Provoking (V entry)

“Hello,” Jian Xingce greeted in a good mood as he observed Jiang Cheng’s reactions. He even slightly bent over to help pick up the luggage that had toppled over.

“Ah, thank you, little unc–…handsome guy.” Jian Suizhi quickly went to grab his luggage and almost slipped up, but instantly corrected himself when he noticed Jian Xingce’s warning gaze.

Jiang Cheng regained his composure and coughed lightly to hide how excited he was internally, then said in a low voice: “Hello, Captain Jian.[mfn]I made the others address jxc as “team leader” while jc uses “captain” bc i feel like it fits their military background better. the word used is the same tho[/mfn]”

Damm, holy shit, it really seemed like it was true! Captain Jian! Alive!

Jian Xingce replied with an “en” before walking away from Jiang Cheng to stand in the center, right in front of the guests.

His gaze swept over briefly, but it made Su Nuannuan and the others instinctively assume a military posture with their chin up and tummy tucked in. They all abandoned their previous slacking posture and stood upright.

[WTF the new team leader looks so imposing?! Just standing gives off a different feeling!]

[Oof, compared to that Korean oppa, our Chinese team leader is in a completely different league!]

[Help, it’s a real soldier this time! Isn’t he too handsome, my legs are weak]

[I finally get the appeal of a buzzcut, even with a scar on his face…looks even more handsome!!]

[A buzzcut is the ultimate test of a man’s looks]

The director specially gave Jian Xingce a long solo shot. Since the sponsor was rich and had the looks, plus how he invested both money and effort, it was necessary to thank him properly!

“A thank-you to our sponsor, DingXun 5G Mobile Phones, for their exclusive and honorable sponsorship! <Hi, Wilderness>, here we come!”

All the guests recorded a promotional line as requested by the program group.

Jiang Cheng noticed that the sponsor had changed, and the originally long list of names that was supposed to be read out became only this new one.

The audience in the live broadcast room also naturally noticed this. Just as Jiang Cheng and the others boarded the boat to leave for the island, the barrage was buzzing with gossip—

[Huh, the sponsors changed? There’s only this one left??]

[The previous live broadcast’s accident wasn’t small ah, it can’t be that easy to find new sponsors on such short notice]

[No idea who’s that foolish sponsor. I get why the other sponsors would withdraw their investment, who would want to lose money paying out the insurance claims hah]

[The Xingchen-jiejie upstairs can get out, your family’s brother[mfn]ref to jiang xinghao in case it wasn’t clear[/mfn]isn’t here, there’s no need to be so salty]

[Class Representative here[mfn]not literally, it’s just a way of saying they know about this topic and is here to explain[/mfn], DingXun 5G Mobile Phones is a new electronics company from a branch affiliated with HuaBang Group. There’s no need for me to tell you guys about HuaBang Group, right? It’s the country’s largest private military industrial company, the leading example, yet upstairs is calling HuaBang a foolish sponsor?]

[F*cking amazing ah, just this sponsorship from HuaBang’s DingXun is worth more than that of dozen small brands combined]

[Awesome, awesome, our Xiao Hai show can actually pull this kind of thing off?!]

On the boat, Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but keep glancing at Jian Xingce.

—After all, that person was a living legend. He enlisted at the age of 17 and began to carry out missions at 19, joined the Jianghan Special Forces Division[mfn]changed from SZB to this. already edited all past TLs[/mfn] at 22, became the youngest instructor in history of the Jianghan Special Forces Division, and was on a special secret mission at 27 before he went missing. Three years later, he was declared officially dead in the line of duty. Such a record was inconceivable, like a legend that nobody could ever surpass.

Jiang Cheng had heard all about the other party after joining the Jianghan Special Forces Division in his past life. Even if he later went on to break several of the long-lasting records the other had set, those were still what Jian Xingce had achieved at the age of 22 when he had just joined the Jianghan Special Forces Division and were not his peak achievements at all.

Jiang Cheng always felt that it was a pity that he wasn’t able to truly compete with the other party.

Now that he was here, four years younger, he came across the younger version of the legendary soldier in this world. This was the only pleasant surprise he had gotten since he came here.

Jiang Cheng couldn’t help but glance at Jian Xingce again, only this time he was caught red-handed by Jian Suizhi.

Jian Suizhi: “Why do I feel like you’re paying extra attention to our new team leader?”

He didn’t show such interest previously, not even when meeting his rumored ex-fiancé!

Jiang Cheng felt that this celebrity had no sense of tact, but he had to give an answer since the person already asked the question: “…you can understand it as admiration, as respect for the strong.”

Jian Xingce also felt that this nephew of his was quite annoying. How could he not know that Jiang Cheng had been sneaking glances at him? The only reason he had not exposed the other, was it not so that Jiang Cheng could keep looking a few more times?

Jian Xingce walked over from the side in an imposing manner and glanced at Jian Suizhi coldly before saying, “We’re almost there, get your luggage ready and prepare to disembark.”

“Roger!” Jiang Cheng subconsciously stood upright and answered in a firm voice.

Even Jian Suizhi, who was to his side, was influenced and couldn’t help but straighten his back too. It took him a few seconds to realise that he was here to participate in a variety show and not to join military training.

He subconsciously glanced at his little uncle again. His little uncle had been a soldier for more than ten years after all, so there was inevitably the shadow of a solemn soldier in the way he walked and led the team. The difference could be seen with just one glance, but it also shouldn’t be to the extent of giving off such a strong impression, right?

After disembarking, they arrived on the deserted island.

All the guests dragged their own luggage and stood in a scattered manner on the beach, facing the bright sun and its scorching heat.

“First of all, congratulations to the guests for coming back to the deserted island to resume our four days and three nights survival challenge!”

“Because of the accident in our live broadcast previously, we have reflected deeply on the show’s original purpose and meaning. As such, we made major adjustments to the format and content.”

“Next, I’ll go over the brand new rules for our Xiao Hai Challenge!”

The director looked at the guests in front of him. It was necessary for the guests to sign their contracts again because of the changes to the program’s format, and it was done earlier so they could reach a consensus. This meant the whole process now was actually just to let the audience know about it.

“From this moment onwards, the program group will no longer give out any extra survival tasks and will only have one objective: that is, to survive four days and three nights on this deserted island. Before the challenge begins, the program group will provide all the guests with the same four basic survival props—”

The staff members then handed out a supply pack to every guest, and in it was— a Swiss Army knife, a standard military canteen, a bundle of ropes, as well as a hiking bag.

“In addition, during the recording, the program group will not be helping out in any way. If the four guests and the team leader can complete the survival challenge, our exclusive sponsor, DingXun 5G Mobile Phones, will be donating 1 million to the marine environment protection cause!”

Jian Suizhi’s eyes widened slightly– he didn’t know about this extra piece of information. His little uncle was really going all out this time!

“Moreover, taking into account the significant increase in difficulty of our Xiao Hai challenge, we made some changes to the completion criteria. Any guest can choose to withdraw during the challenge, and it will be considered a success as long as even one can make it to the end!—of course, this doesn’t include our team leader!”

“This time, we decided to spice up our Xiao Hai a little bit! Thank you for your support, everyone!”

The director hyped up the atmosphere on his own and blew into the megaphone after he was done speaking: “Woo~ Woooo~ Woo—”

In the live broadcast room—

[What the heck, why do I feel like the director became even more deranged since the previous live broadcast’s accident?? How did this absurdly risky plan even get approved ahhh!]

[Help, I’m really worried about my family’s goddess, her trash agent made her sign up for yet another messy variety show!!]

[Wuwuwu every inch of my family’s brother’s body can fetch a high insurance claim![mfn]every part of him is expensive, just a way to say he’s very precious[/mfn] This trash program group better be super careful![mfn]小心一点 means “be careful a bit” but the 一 is replaced by 亿 (hundred million) (both are “yi” (yī/yì) which basically means “be REALLY careful” lol[/mfn]]

Jian Xingce glanced at the director who was still trying his best to hype the atmosphere up by himself before taking a step forward, making the other immediately stop the noise conscientiously and hand the stage over.

“Changing the program’s format and content was done in the hopes of having everyone learn from the previous accident. This time, everyone will be experiencing what it really means to survive in the wilderness. Danger will be lurking everywhere, and you will all come to learn that this absolutely isn’t just a mere child’s play. Don’t underestimate the genuine dangers because of the dramatic atmosphere the staff is trying to create.”

After Jian Xingce finished speaking, Jiang Cheng would have almost blurted out “Roger!” if it wasn’t for the timely arrival of the director blowing in the megaphone and fortunately cutting off his words.

“<Hi, Wilderness>! Here we come!” The director shouted enthusiastically and in high spirits. “The program group stationed here can wrap up now!”

Jiang Cheng: ???

“Just kidding. We’ll station the boat at around ten nautical miles offshore and will provide immediate assistance if a guest is in need. Please rest assured, guests and audience.” The director smiled happily.

Huang Daheng: “Looking at you like this really makes my fists itch. Go away quickly, okay? Get out of my sight.”

The director: “…”

Jian Xingce’s gaze swept over the director and the program group before saying, “Since the next few hours are all up to us, we have to first and foremost ensure we have a place to rest tonight.”

“It’s exactly 3:00 PM right now, so there are still 3 more hours to go before the sun sets. We don’t have much time left.”

“If you ever have the misfortune of being stranded in the middle of nowhere without any signal, the first thing you have to do is to calm down as much as possible then look for the highest place in the area. Once you get there, you can get an overall idea of the environment and its conditions to find a safe place for shelter.”

Jian Xingce got directly to the point and brought the four guests to walk further into the deserted island, no longer caring about the director and the program group who were getting ready to leave.

“Director…do we really just let them go? And just let them stay by themselves on this island? What if something happens ah?” The director’s assistant wasn’t reassured and had to confirm it once more.

The director looked at the other party, answering in an unfathomable tone, “Do you even know who that team leader is? The former Chief Captain of the Jianghan Special Forces Division. Such a background means that in the whole nation, and even all of Asia, there might not be anyone who has better individual survival abilities than him.”

“Moreover, ever since he retired, the Jianghan Special Forces Division’s Chief Captain position has been vacant since they just couldn’t find someone with equal skills to take over.” The director shook his head proudly since he had done proper research, “With him around, it’s like our four guests have been strapped with ten safety cables!”

The assistant gasped.

“What’s more, he’s also…” The director nearly slipped up and quickly stopped talking. He had almost revealed Jian Xingce’s other identity as their sponsor.

He was relieved after shutting his mouth close.

“He’s also what?” The assistant asked curiously.

“He’s also an employee! The responsibility falls on him if anything happens to the guests! Go, go, go, why do you have so many questions!” The director made an excuse as he quickly sent away the assistant.

///

On the guests’ side, Jian Xingce led the way as they dragged their luggage and trudged along the uneven trail.

At this time, Jian Suizhi and the others were especially envious of Jiang Cheng. With one hand holding a light duffel bag while the hiking bag provided by the program team was on his shoulders, he followed behind the team leader effortlessly and without any burden.

They, who had to carry their luggage as if they were dragging along a stubborn five-year old, simply couldn’t compare.

“The hill up ahead should be this area’s highest point and is thus our destination. It should take us around thirty minutes to get there,” Jian Xingce said.

He would pause every now and then to check on the guests’ stamina consumption. Surprisingly, it wasn’t Su Nuannuan who was the weakest one in the team. That title actually went to Huang Daheng.

Every time Huang Daheng would be on the verge of collapsing, Jian Xingce, who was keeping watch, would call for a short break before setting off again. In this way, between walking and resting, the time they took to reach the hill was not too far off from their initial estimation.

[I originally thought the team leader would help them carry the luggage or something…it turns out it’s completely up to the guests themselves?]

[The team leader isn’t a hotel attendant, yet he has to carry luggage too? Surviving in the wilderness means they have to look after themselves lolol]

[Don’t give up, Teacher Huang, hahaha even Goddess Su got ahead of you!]

The group finally reached the top of the hill. It could still be regarded as flat and open, but with one glance it was possible to see most of the island and the surrounding sea.

“Wow—” Huang Daheng inhaled deeply, “Amazing! With the smell of the sea and the fresh oxygen pouring in, I suddenly feel like this hellish trip was worth it!”

Jian Suizhi and Su Nuannuan exchanged glances and couldn’t resist smiling: “Yeah, such a view indeed makes it worthy.”

Jian Xingce looked at the guests and asked: “So what did you all see?”

Huang Daheng was stunned for a moment, then answered in a confused manner: “Well… a deep and vast blue ocean, a large expanse of trees… It also turns out that this island isn’t as isolated as we originally thought, and there are actually so many islands of several sizes surrounding it.”

Su Nuannuan and Jian Suizhi also made one or two observations, but Jian Xingce still didn’t look impressed. He then turned to Jiang Cheng and asked, “What about you?”

Jiang Cheng thought to himself: “It’s here, it’s here, Captain Jian’s assessment is here!”

He observed carefully for a moment before saying: “It can be seen that there’s a beach that’s sheltered from the wind on the other side of the island, which means we won’t have to worry about being buried alive overnight by the sand if we were to take shelter there. And that patch of greenery surrounding the beach in a ring-like way, providing shade, should be coconut trees. In this way, we can obtain a basic supply of both water and food.”

“In short, it should be an ideal spot to set up camp.” Jiang Cheng said.

Jian Xingce finally appeared somewhat satisfied, the look in his eyes easing up a bit.

To the side, realisation flashed on the faces of Jian Suizhi and the others.

However, Jiang Cheng wasn’t done yet and went on to say: “But it’s obviously impossible to cross the center of the island to get to that side before the sky darkens. In that case, the most ideal place to set up camp at the moment is here—”

He pointed to a hill located a short distance away from the coastline. The leeward part of the hill had a gentle slope and a relatively more wide and open view with not as many trees around.

“First, being in an area sheltered by the wind means making a fire would be easier and more convenient and therefore less prone to accidents. Secondly, since there are mostly low shrubs here, the chance of being struck by lightning if it rains is quite small.”

Jiang Cheng then pointed to a spot behind the shrubbery where the sound of water was faintly discernable: “What’s more, it’s possible to see what seems to be a small cascade over there. It can provide us with freshwater. The distance from here shouldn’t be that much, possibly only about 1km away.”

When Jiang Cheng was done explaining, he looked at Jian Xingce: “The most important thing is that it’s the best option closest to us. Setting up camp there is the best choice we can make in this kind of situation where both time and stamina are limited.”

“En, a pretty good analysis.” Jian Xingce looked at Jiang Cheng and nodded slightly in approval, then glanced at the other guests who were still stunned in place with his eyebrows furrowing: “Have you all heard him? Then let’s get moving.”

Jian Suizhi was the first to return to his senses, and he looked at Jiang Cheng in a completely different light.

Both Su Nuannuan and Huang Daheng were more-or-less the same, filled with disbelief and admiration as well as a hint of confusion. They really wanted to know what was going on in Jiang Cheng’s brain.[mfn]this is a compliment btw, not an insult[/mfn]

Taking such a brief glance, he was actually able to make such a detailed analysis?

As for them, all they could observe were the trees and the sea one after the other. They couldn’t make out anything else.

[Damn, just listening made me dumbfounded. Gotta admit that he has some skills]

[I can just tell that upstairs didn’t watch the previous live broadcast where JC led the team to find freshwater, JC’s team directly crushed that Korean team leader~]

[Hahahaha lmao, looking at Goddess Su’s expression, it’s exactly like a study scum[mfn]underachiever[/mfn], looking at a study tyrant[mfn]academic genius[/mfn]!]

[IKR. Isn’t this just like a study scum just writing “answer” on the exam paper while the study tyrant already whooshed through the whole thing? And even got full marks]

[…so real it makes me want to cry]

The group set off again to head straight towards their destination at the foot of the hill, the side sheltered by the wind.

The area Jiang Cheng picked out was precisely the place Jian Xingce had in mind after his observation at the top of the hill.

Jian Xingce slowed down his pace and waited for Jiang Cheng so they could walk side by side.

He covered the lapel mic with his hand and whispered to Jiang Cheng: “Next time when you’re free, you can explain to me why you’re so knowledgeable about war-time strategies like preparing a backup shelter.”

Jiang Cheng’s heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged and he even looked at Jian Xingce in a puzzled manner: “What was that?”

Jian Xingce glanced at him, then lightly said: “Nothing.”

He put away the hand holding the mic and walked ahead with large strides.

Little liar, your ability to pretend has reached max level.

Jiang Cheng noticed that Jian Xingce didn’t have any reaction and neither did he insist on asking further, so he breathed a huge sigh of relief as he let himself fall behind a few steps. Only at this moment did he become aware of his pounding heartbeat and cold fingers.

If he told the other party that he had come from a different time and space, and that he was the chief instructor who took over the other’s role in the Jianghan Special Forces Division after his retirement, would Captain Jian regard him as a troublemaker and arrest him?

Jiang Cheng put himself in the other’s shoes and thought that if it was up to him, he would definitely arrest the other first.

He immediately dismissed the idea of confessing to receive leniency.

It was very likely he could just muddle through with vague answers, Jiang Cheng thought in a daze. If Jian Xingce brought it up again later, he could absolutely just pretend that it was basic outdoors knowledge.

After all, for most people, they understood the information as “outdoors survival knowledge” and had no idea that it could actually be traced back as a strategy used by the military during times of war.

He was simply someone who had done their homework on an average, basic level and nothing more.

“Everyone, put your luggage aside in the open area. This will be our campsite tonight, but we can’t directly use it yet.” Jian Xingce’s voice brought Jiang Cheng back to his senses.

They had already reached their destination. A few short trees were scattered around the open area, and the space was covered with fallen leaves and dry branches.

The ground was covered with long and thick dry branches. Jian Xingce picked up one and said: “The first thing to do right now is to completely clear out the dry branches, the shrubs, and everything else you can see on the ground to prevent snakes or other reptiles from hiding underneath.”

After he gave a demonstration, the others also followed suit and searched for useful “props”.

“These tree stumps are ready-made bed bases. We can use them to put together a few beds in a short while,” Jian Xingce explained further to help the confused guests have a better understanding of the situation.

The sky had not yet darkened, but the sun had already begun to set. Jian Xingce, who had been observing the sky all along, made the arrangements right away: “Jian Suizhi and Su Nuannuan, the two of you are responsible for clearing out this area. The remaining two will follow me, we need to find the materials to build the beds.”

“What about dinner? And how will we make a fire?” Su Nuannuan hurriedly asked. “We don’t even have flint this time around.”

Just hearing about it made Jian Suizhi’s hands ache. For better or for worse, there was still a flint to make a fire last time. For better or for worse, even if he had struggled to the point his fingers were calloused, he at least had a prop to use. This time, though…

He looked at his own family’s little uncle with full confidence: “The team leader will definitely have a way.”

Jian Xingce glanced at him: “Finish the tasks at hand before we come back first.”

While clearing up the area might sound simple, it actually was quite time-consuming. Jian Xingce didn’t believe those two could do it completely before their return.

Huang Daheng didn’t think he’d have to follow the team leader, so his expression was a bit bitter.

“Team Leader, where do we even have to go to find those materials?” Huang Daheng asked.

Jian Xingce didn’t give a response right away and instead turned to look at Jiang Cheng: “Do you have an idea?”

Jiang Cheng: “…” So the time has come. He was here to test him out!

“According to the discovery channel, vines and bamboo poles can be used to build beds. The bamboo poles are tough and can bear quite some weight,” Jiang Cheng gave Jian Xingce a sincere look. These were things taught by the discovery channel. “When we were going downhill earlier, we seem to have passed by a bamboo forest. Perhaps we can put this opportunity to good use?”

Bamboo was widely scattered domestically, and many remote islands had its traces as well. For those unfortunate to be stranded on a deserted island, it was actually quite a good material since it wasn’t heavy and could be carried by the average adult man.

Jian Xingce glanced at him, the corners of his lips curving upwards slightly: “To apply what you learnt, not bad. Let’s go.”

When Jian Xingce slowed down his pace deliberately, Jiang Cheng, without realising it, had become the one to lead the way to the bamboo forest.

They didn’t go through the same path they had come from and instead went to the slope on the other side. While it was closer to the bamboo forest, it was also more steep.

Jiang Cheng’s plan was to take this steep path so that they could go through the gentle downhill later, which would save a lot of time.

After having explained his reasoning to Jian Xingce and getting the latter’s approval, he continued forward while Huang Daheng followed them in a baffled manner, looking just like an innocent passerby who had lost their way.

Huang Daheng shrugged and whispered to the PD on his side: “It’s not that I don’t want to talk, but that I really can’t get a word in. It’s beyond my professional ability.”

[Hahahahaha, Teacher Huang, we get you!]

[Teacher Huang is my POV hahaha lost from beginning to end +1]

[Quietly looking at the two teachers in front to take me to fly][mfn]you guys prob alr know this but it’s not literal. it’s like “carry me” in gaming terms[/mfn]

Not far ahead of them was a pine tree that had fallen sideways on the slope. The tree that had been broken into two, likely due to a hurricane, had its roots exposed and looked to have withered for a long time already.

When Jiang Cheng saw it, his eyes lit up. A pine tree, ah! That was a good thing! It could help with making a fire ah!!

He was just about to head in that direction when he remembered that Captain Jian was right behind him, making him halt.

He turned his head to look at Jian Xingce blankly and asked: “Captain Jian, why don’t you walk in front? It’ll be more reassuring.”

Jian Xingce felt quite amused by his words. He had long seen that broken pine tree, but didn’t want to expose the other’s clumsy excuse and instead took the opportunity to walk past Jiang Cheng before asking: “See that pine tree over there?”

“En.”

“It will help us make a fire.” Jian Xingce motioned for Jiang Cheng and Huang Daheng to come over, “Watch your steps. Take out your knives.”

Jian Xingce used his knife to scrape the bark on the pine tree’s surface, pulling off the dry, light-yellow fatwood. He then picked up the short and thick pieces that looked broken and stuffed them in his pocket.

“If by chance you ever stumble across such a pine tree in the wild, you must definitely not let it go. Pine fatwood is an extremely precious material in the wild to use for a fire since it contains highly flammable resin. This means that even if it gets wet, just shake it dry and it can still be used.” Jian Xingce looked at Huang Daheng as he explained.

Huang Daheng felt like he was in an illusion. There were obviously two students who had come to class together, yet only one had to stay back for remedial lessons.

Right now, he was precisely the one who was called out for remedial lessons.

Huang Daheng touched his nose before following their example, using his knife to peel.

The process might sound really simple, but it was actually quite troublesome. One wrong move could turn the whole thing into useless wood shavings.

Huang Daheng spent a great deal of effort just to finally get a small bundle of fatwood.

He sighed before smiling into the camera: “Aye, the process isn’t as simple as it looks. Fortunately, I still lived a few decades more and have some skills. Had it been a youngster like God Jian, I reckon he wouldn’t have finished even half of what I did.”

After he spoke, he turned to Jiang Cheng and asked enthusiastically: “Teacher Jiang, do you want me to help…”

His voice cut off when he saw just how many fatwood pieces Jiang Cheng held. Jiang Cheng had turned to look at him nonetheless, and happened to glance at his hand.

Huang Daheng immediately hid his hand behind his back!

How could this be! The youngsters nowadays were so strong?!

[So funny hahahahahaha Teacher Huang, hey, don’t drag youngsters into the water just because your skills are not up to par!]

[Jiang Cheng: What? Want me to help?]

[Hahahahahaha]

“Thank you, Teacher Huang. Those should be enough,” Jiang Cheng said, not exposing him. He put away the fatwood and patted his pocket with satisfaction.

In the wild, with this around, ensuring safety was not just all talk.

A brief interlude later, the bamboo forest was right ahead. The bamboos were lush green, had thin stems and were about 6-7 metres tall.

Most of the bamboos here were only about the size of a fist in diameter and had hollow stems. After using a knife to crack it open, just find a rock and hit it hard a few times. In this way, it can easily be broken off.

Huang Daheng observed and thought that it was simple, so he immediately got to work and tested it out. The task was as easy as expected, thus he instantly wanted to use this opportunity to redeem his image.

“I’ll do it, I’ll do it. How many do we need?” Huang Daheng looked at Jiang Cheng and Jian Xingce.

Jiang Cheng recalled the distribution of the tree stumps in the camp area and quickly constructed a simple blueprint in his mind.

One bamboo stem can be split into three sections. Since they needed to use the bamboo stems as bed frames as well as make triangle supports…

“—Sixteen.” He and Jian Xingce both said at the same time.

Jiang Cheng subconsciously glanced over and met Jian Xingce’s calm gaze, alarm bells going off in his head.

“…Ah, what a coincidence,” he said blankly. “I made a lucky guess.”

Jian Xingce glanced at him: “Is that so.”

He didn’t say anything more, but just those few words were enough to make Jiang Cheng’s heart beat slightly faster.

Huang Daheng couldn’t help gasping at the number: “Sixteen?! How can we even carry them back later?”

“It’s possible,” Jian Xingce said simply and glanced around. On this kind of deserted island, there were climbing vines everywhere. These were perfect ready-made ropes.

He chose a few of them which were 2-3m in length and used the knife to cut them before laying them on the ground, saying to Huang Daheng: “Stack all the bamboo you cut onto those vines and tie them up later.”

“Okay.” Huang Daheng faintly understood Jian Xingce’s meaning and immediately rolled up his sleeves to go chop the bamboo.

“The small cascade I saw earlier should be around here. I’ll go fetch some water,” Jiang Cheng said when he saw that Huang Daheng had started working.

They could go through the night without freshwater, but they still had a long road ahead of them tomorrow. It was uncertain if they could find a source of water at that time. What was certain, though, was that the journey would be extremely consuming.

He didn’t know what Captain Jian had in mind, but if it was up to him, he would seize this time to go look for water and bring some back immediately.  Since they were short on time and didn’t have enough manpower, this was the most simple solution.

“You’re going alone? What if you get lost? How about asking the team leader to go with you?” Huang Daheng didn’t agree with his decision and immediately said, “I’ll be right here, anyway, so you guys can go fetch the water then come back for me. It’s still better than you going alone to search for a small cascade you don’t know the location of.”

Jian Xingce nodded slightly: “If anything happens, have the PD contact us.”

“Oh right, Teacher Huang, give me your canteen.” Jiang Cheng said.

“Okay. What about Nuannuan and Teacher Jian’s?” Huang Daheng asked while handing over the canteen.

Jiang Cheng pointed at the bamboo on the ground that had just been cut: “Bamboo nodes are all hollow, so we can make do with this for now.”

While speaking, he was just about to demonstrate when a clanging sound was heard from Jian Xingce’s side. Jiang Cheng and Huang Daheng turned simultaneously to find that Jian Xingce had already cut two sections of bamboo. Each node was roughly 1m long and both ends were sealed shut.

Jian Xingce used his knife to carve a hole on one end.

Jiang Cheng looked around and found a broken tree stump that happened to have a pointed tip smaller than the bamboo node, which made it just right to use as a spike.

The corners of his lips curved upwards. This was much more convenient and direct than Captain Jian’s delicate hole carving…

He picked up another bamboo node and also used the knife first, poking at one end and slightly fiddling with it a few times to make a small opening before walking to the broken tree stump and holding the node upright. He then smashed it against the pointed tip!

Dong! Dong! Dong!

Huang Daheng’s eyes widened in shock as he watched Jiang Cheng use even more strength to lift and smash downwards! Bamboo fragments flew everywhere!

“Done.” Jiang Cheng lifted the bamboo node and lowered his head to take a look. The end of the node that was originally solid had been pierced through. Later, water could be poured in through that hole.

The process was twice as fast as Captain Jian’s.

He grinned as he held the bamboo node and turned around only to notice that Jian Xingce was looking at him with a vague smile.

“Quite the good method there.”

Jiang Cheng coughed before saying modestly, “Violence works wonders sometimes.”

[Help me, what’s with this crazy and insane image gap, I’m losing my mind hahaha]

[Looks like a weak and delicate beauty, yet one punch actually packs a lot?]

[Lol look at how freaked out our Teacher Huang is hahaha, should be the only one among them who genuinely matches the weakling character image, hahahaha]

“All right, let’s set out. Go quickly and return quickly,” Jian Xingce said.

Jiang Cheng nodded, then said to Huang Daheng: “Stay put and wait for us to come back. Don’t run around.”

“That’s for sure.” Huang Daheng expressed that he was weak and helpless, so where would he get the courage to run wild? “Those sixteen bamboos and I will be awaiting your return.”

Jiang Cheng chortled, then waved to Huang Daheng before quickening his pace to catch up with Jian Xingce.

Jian Xingce glanced at Jiang Cheng who was following closely behind, and the look in his eyes deepened. This was an opportunity to test the other party.

He gradually picked up the pace, doing so in a subtle manner.

The audience in the live broadcast room who could see the scene most clearly could feel that the two people were walking faster—

[Their speed now vs earlier, the latter is just like old men taking a stroll…]

[My goodness! I almost thought those two were walking on the flat surface of a sports ground! It looks way too easy and effortless!]

[Comfort+1000]

Jiang Cheng followed behind and didn’t feel that Jian Xingce had increased his pace, and only when he noticed that the cameraman started to pant did he finally realise that Jian Xingce had deliberately tricked him.

His eyes narrowed. Captain Jian was really quite sly… Jiang Cheng gradually slowed down, widening the distance between him and Jian Xingce.

Jian Xingce had indeed been observing him all along from the corner of his eyes, so he also slowed down. He then looked at Jiang Cheng and asked: “Was I going too fast?”

“A little, I can’t quite keep up.” Jiang Cheng’s face was slightly flushed and his breathing light as he said sincerely.

Jian Xingce chuckled faintly and said in a noncommittal tone: “Then I’ll slow down a bit.”

[Right now, his face can’t even be considered red nor is his breathing heavy! How can this be called not being able to keep up!]

[Lolll the moment the team leader turns around, JC immediately acts weak. Does he like the team leader? Refer to the girlfriend who can’t twist open a bottle cap][mfn]a “delicate and weak” girl who can’t open a bottle without her bf’s help[/mfn]

[Isn’t Jiang Cheng already recognised as a green tea 0[mfn]ref to “green tea bitch”, as you know, someone who acts innocent but is actually two-faced. 0 = bottom[/mfn] in the circle? I was wondering why he wasn’t clinging to God Jian anymore, so it turns out that his taste changed. He prefers someone like the team leader now~]

[Tbh based on their looks alone, I feel like they match really well (whisper)]

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start of VIP chapters~ bug eating soon… hah

i should probably explain why i update so irregularly, so: i had originally planned to drop this due to health issues, but seeing that it hasn’t been picked up even after so long, i decided to just continue it ;; but i can’t guarantee a fixed update schedule… sorry… i’ll try my best until it gets picked up by a more qualified translator. if not, i’ll continue on my own pace since i also want to work on my other ongoing TL :”)